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Friday, June 29, 2012

Sepia Saturday: Tennis anyone?

Sepia Saturday challenges
bloggers to share family history through old photographs.

This week’s Sepia Saturday prompt shows Dinah Shore and
Burt Bacharach playing tennis. This is an especially fitting theme since
Wimbledon, the oldest and most prestigious tennis tournament in the world, is
underway.

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, my family used to have
Breakfast at Wimbledon. We didn’t always have strawberries and cream as is the
tradition at REAL Wimbledon, but we’d make a party of it and gather around the
television to watch the games. Of course, we had to cheer for Jimmy Connors,
John McEnroe, Billie Jean King, and little Chris Evert. The most enthusiastic cheerleader was always
my dad.

Daddy was an avid tennis player and very GOOD at it. He
played every Sunday morning no matter what.
Sometimes he played with men his own age but more often than not he was
giving the boys on the tennis team at my high school a real workout.

Cradock High School Tennis Team 1968
scanned from the yearbook

All of
them knew my dad. Most of them played with him and against him in a Sunday
morning pick-up game at some point in their high school tennis career. Daddy
liked to play back. Sometimes it looked like he was standing still making
everyone else run to answer a lob in the corner or scramble to fight a wicked
backhand shot in the face. And undoubtedly the boys were confronted with his
sarcasm and trash talk. Unfortunately, that did nothing for my social
life. (And there were some cute guys on that team!)

from Google Images

When Daddy’s matches were done for the day, he stopped by
the 7-11 and brought Slurpees home for my sister and me. When they first came on the market in the mid
1960s, we couldn’t get enough of that sweet cherry goodness.

One time Daddy had to stop by the grocery store on the
way home. When he arrived with all the
items on the list, Momma noticed he wasn’t wearing his favorite floppy tennis
hat. “Where’s your hat?”

“JESUS!” he exclaimed.
(He was very religious.) “I must’ve
lost it in the store.”

So Daddy retraced his steps and, sure enough, there was
his tennis hat lying in the frozen food case. In the days before the stand-up
freezers, you had to bend over to reach that box of peas. Apparently the hat
slipped right off without his noticing.

Not THE hat of the frozen food story -
probably a new and improved version
given as part of a Christmas gift

I don’t know if Daddy’s head was just too big for the hat
or if the hat had shrunk in the wash. But it’s a good chance the hat shrank. Daddy
always washed his own tennis clothes. He’d throw just about anything together
and call it a load. Even red wrist bands. In with tennis whites. In no time
Daddy had a full supply of pink shorts and pink v-neck shirts for his Sunday
match. And he wore ‘em too. (Maybe that’s why the boys on the tennis team took
no interest in me. Yeah, that had to be it.)

You’d think Daddy would have appreciated receiving a nice
pair of Rod Laver tennis shorts or a simple Wilson shirt for his birthday or
Father’s Day. No. He never wanted to look too good. And he didn't. But a fresh can of yellow Penn or Dunlop tennis balls was always greeted with a big smile. Then open the can. PSSSHHHHH. Now sniff.

Oh, Wendy, you crack me up. I did date a tennis player once; his parents even had their own tennis court. He was actually pretty nice (and rich) ... ahh, the one who got away.

This whole post is wonderful. You have a great memory.Your Dad sounds like a lot of fun. I had forgotten about boxes of frozen peas, and that was so nice that he brought you girls home Slurpees each week. I loved this blast from the past!

Fun tennis/dad stories. I hope I am still active into my 70's! I was never much for tennis but my black labs LOVED tennis balls and could find one no matter where we were. They would go nuts walking by the tennis courts! Your dad would have loved them!

What wonderful memories. The hat story is great. And the sorting of the laundry. My husband must have graduated from the same laundry school. Yes, I agree with the other posts - your Dad sounds like fun

I've heard Slurpee's and Margarita's are similar, and good memory enhancers which surely account for your detailed memories and excellent storytelling. I really enjoyed this story about your Dad. As a younger Slurpee drinker and tennis player, I had a lesson or two from a guy in pink shorts and faded red wrist bands...he had fading red hair and a floppy pink hat, too. He and your Dad may be lobbin' Dunlops right now. Funny about the frozen peas!

The last time I played tennis was on indoor courts in Norway but problems with a gammy knee made me take uo golf instead. My latest tennis practice has been hitting tennis balls for my daughter's dogs to fetch. Your Dad obviously enjoyed his tennis and his hats.

What sweet memories of your dad. Enjoyed the story of him losing his hat - my local grocery store still has several bend-over freezers. Those slurpees were a treat weren't they? My favorite flavor was Coca Cola.

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About Me

My name is Wendy. About twenty years ago, I helped my mother research the Jolletts. Since retiring from teaching, I have expanded my research which I share here. When I’m not looking for my own family, I index for FamilySearch and the Greene County Historical Society.
Welcome to Jollett Etc. Please leave a comment to let me know you were here. If you have more information or believe we are related, EMAIL ME at wendymath at cox dot net